Nicodemus Complex
Nicodemus was a religious scholar and leader of his time, a member of the Sanhedrin, the ruling Jewish body. He had a keen interest in this Jesus and his teaching. Jesus looked at him and proclaimed, “You must be born again.”
Nicodemus knew that physically that was impossible. One cannot go back into their mother’s womb and be reborn. He was entirely perplexed by what Jesus asked him to do.
Often I have heard this passage taught explaining the spiritual birth. One is born physically, but needs to be born spiritual, thus Christians teach about rebirth. How often has Billy Graham preached, “You must be born again”?
One of the mindsets towards evangelism we might examine is that of “birthing”. Evangelists know how to birth. Birthing is what drives them, their passion. They are like midwives wanting to birth. After the birth the nursery staff can begin the new one’s development, for there are more births out there.
If birthing is so important to the evangelist, I would like you to brainstorm ideas at how an evangelism might use the birthing process in the Church other than just “leading people to the Lord”. If those in the church listen to what the Holy Spirit want to do among them, who better to birth that vision, that passion, than the evangelist. After the evangelists “ignites” the vision, others in the church will move forward to implement it.
As we look at the five fold ministry in future blogs, we will discover that “birthing” is the key, the passion, the point of view of the Evangelist that will free him to be what he was created to be, yet serve the others in the body bringing unity.